Andina

Peruvian PM meets with Swiss Ambassador

Photo: ANDINA/Presidency of the Council of Ministers of Peru

Photo: ANDINA/Presidency of the Council of Ministers of Peru

10:31 | Lima, Sep. 24.

Prime Minister Anibal Torres received the visit from Switzerland's Ambassador to Peru Paul Garnier with whom he had the opportunity to discuss various issues on the bilateral agenda such as cooperation, natural disaster prevention, environmental protection, as well as trade and investment.

Likewise, the dignitaries discussed issues on the multilateral agenda such as the one referring to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the upcoming presence of Switzerland as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2023.

The diplomat emphasized that cooperation is mainly based on the work carried out by Swiss Government agencies, such as the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), which are essential instruments for improving the living conditions of the vulnerable population —especially in the development of environmental programs, responsible mining, and water sanitation.

In turn, Prime Minister Torres stressed that the issues part of cooperation are very important for Peru in its aspiration to become an OECD member, since Swiss cooperation in Peru is aimed at achieving the standards required to join that organization.

Similarly, the Cabinet chief requested the support from Switzerland for this important objective set by the Peruvian State.

Moreover, the high-ranking official called on the envoy so that his country strengthens cooperation programs and projects, as well as continues boosting trade relations and the arrival of Swiss investments in Peru.

In addition, he invited Switzerland to participate in investment tenders and government-to-government programs offered by Peru for the execution of infrastructure works.

A topic of singular importance addressed at the event was related to cooperation for natural disaster risk management. In this sense, the Cabinet chief expressed Peru's will to strengthen ties with Switzerland.

Within this framework, he mentioned that the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, through the Disaster Risk Management System (Sinagerd), is working on the issue so as to identify and reduce the risks associated with disasters in Peru.

For his part, Ambassador Garnier stressed that on this matter Switzerland is working closely with the Deputy Ministry of Territorial Governance on projects, based on the cooperation agreement in the event of natural disasters, which has recently been modified to exchange new strategies, methodologies, and processes so as to strengthen the preparation of the population and thus reduce the vulnerability of citizens in the capital city and regions —with the participation of municipalities.

(END) NDP/MVB

Published: 9/24/2022